Senior management 'Cannot Locate Our Users Data'

Research has found that two-thirds of IT executives do not know where their data is, while three-quarters cannot track it.

The research by Varonis of 400 companies at EMC World found that 67 per cent of senior management respondents either don't know where all company data resides, or were not sure. It also found that 74 per cent of respondents did not have a process for tracking which files had been placed on third party cloud storage server.

Of those that allow cloud-based file synchronisation services, only nine per cent of respondents' companies have a process for authorising and reviewing access to cloud repositories in place. Under a quarter (23 per cent) were still developing their access policies.

David Gibson, vice president of strategy at Varonis, said: “The results clearly show a lack of control by those organisations that have adopted cloud file sync services. The most disturbing findings were the number of companies that report they have no way to track what data is being stored in the cloud or any process to manage access to that data (or plans to do so).

“This should act as a wakeup call for organisations to develop a conscious strategy to ensure secure collaboration as quickly as possible.”

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